Cricket on the Hearth

Happy Easter!

2011-04-26T18:03:00.001-07:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend! We certainly did. We were able to spend a day with each of our families and have a bonfire with friends. Monday was a glorious, sunny day and we took full advantage of it to do some yard work and play with the kids. Simeon and Felicity were quite keen to have the chocolate my parents gave them (Simeon got a bunny and Felicity got a lamb). Felicity is still too little to eat hers, but she enjoyed playing with it just the same.

Felicity

2011-04-11T13:57:00.001-07:00

For the past couple of months we've been back and forth between our family doctor, pediatrician and dietitian with regard to Felicity and her weight (or should I say, lack thereof). When she was born she was 9lbs 1oz; at 8 months she was only 12lbs. This, along with a bad initial consult from the pediatrician, had us very concerned. After a month of worrying and imagining the worst, we're very happy to report that she is doing very well. As it turns out, she's just a petite miss who will grow when she decides and not when we want :) She has gained a few ounces as of her last appointment and she has a great appetite.
We would really appreciate your prayers that she'll continue to gain and we want to praise God that all her test results have come back normal. All the doctors have been great and are supportive of nursing rather than trying to push formula to make her gain weight.
Our little girl is just that...little. And that's okay.

March Break

2011-03-28T07:26:00.000-07:00

We had a fun filled week while Sean was home. We made another trip to the aquatic centre, since Simeon loved it so much. This time around he discovered the twirly slide. He was quite indignant that Sean insisted on going down with him. That dad! Such a tag along!
We also did some skating; well, Sean and Simeon skated while Felicity and I watched. She's not old enough to sit in a sled and be pulled around the ice and I'm not a good enough skater to hold her in my arms. Anyway, we had a great time taking pictures and even a video of Simeon's technique!

And to end our week, Simeon and I went to the theatre for the first time. It was actually a very interesting experience for me as well. He was completely fascinated by everything that was going on (especially at the concession stands lol) and it reminded me that his brain is this amazing little sponge, taking everything in. I'll never look at popcorn machines the same way again :)

Escaping the snow.

2011-02-28T11:01:00.000-08:00

Our church had an event this past weekend called "Winter Breakout", and it was FANTASTIC! We had a swim at the aquatic centre, potluck back at the church and then a variety show to end the night. It was Felicity's first swim and she loved it. She even kicked her legs and splashed a bit.
Simeon enjoyed it so much that he had a meltdown at the end when it was time to leave. He was laid out flat on the pool deck, crying and refusing to go. I was so proud *eye roll*
Anyway, he even tried to swim a bit towards the end and has been talking about it ever since, so I think we'll go again during March break.
After a wonderful supper it was time for the variety show. It was a blast! There were skits, musical performances, lots of prizes and activities for the kids and some hilarious contests.
Simeon is opening up a lot and was eager to go on stage with the other kids; here he is doing the limbo. In his version you either walk under the bar or crawl under when it gets too low. Good thing the judges weren't too particular.And last, but not least: Sean playing "Minute to win it". Apparently this is a show where contestants do a task in a minute or less to advance to the next round. They turned it into a competition between our two teams. In the video Sean is trying to shake all the tic tacs out of the containers glued to each end of the stick in his mouth (without using his hands). Enjoy!

PS- I stopped the camera too soon, it looks like he lost but he then he grabbed his opponent's stick and shook out the remaining candies in her container. Yup, that's my hubby.

A new living room

2011-02-21T07:46:00.001-08:00

Our living room is almost completed! We need a few pictures for the wall and maybe a rug and we'll be all set. But, since finishing touches take a while, I thought I'd share how things look so far. Just to refresh, here is a before picture:
And after:Sean had a friend help him lay the wood floor - Sean's work was interrupted by a nail through his thumb (that guy will do anything to get out of a job lol!). He painted the fake brick around the fireplace insert, tiled the hearth and built a bookshelf with a toy box on the bottom. Perfect for hiding all the kids toys when company comes over.
He also built this tv cabinet.
Mary thanks to John for the great idea of setting it into the wall. Our living room is very narrow and so saving 6 inches makes a big difference. The bench you see below the doors can be pulled out for extra seating and helps balance the look of the room.

Simeon has been lining up his "tools" on the hearth and telling us that we're not allowed to touch them. He learned that phrase well when our living room looked like this: He still made sure that the work was closely monitored though!

Fun in the snow

2011-01-16T13:58:00.000-08:00

Well, lots has been happening the last few weeks. Renos mostly, and there is an end in sight! By Friday (or there abouts) we should have our house back in order. I can't wait until I can post pictures of all that Sean's gotten done, but in the meantime here are some other things we've been up to:

Lots and lots of shoveling! Sean and I were shoveling, while Simeon stomped around in the snow. According to him, he was "crashing the snowballs". It all helps.We built a snowman to give us a hand but he and Simeon got into a standoff as to who was going to be the supervisor. Then there was talk about unionizing and as far as I know the issue still hasn't been resolved.Felicity may also join; she's waiting to hear back about their benefits package. She'll have to go on disability due to her inability to walk for the past 6 months.
We must have worked him pretty hard though. When we got home from grocery shopping that night he was pretty cranky so Sean carried him in from the car and once inside, Simeon got on the floor in one of his silent tantrums. After unpacking the groceries we thought it was strange that he was still sulking on the floor; as he usually recovers quite quickly.
He fell asleep! Once he learns the number for child services we're done for!

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T03:04:00.001-08:00

I hope everyone has a great Christmas!

O Christmas Tree!

2010-12-12T13:55:00.000-08:00

We had a fantastic time decorating. Simeon was a great helper and Felicity offered little coos of advice as she watched us.
Simeon thought that my blue and silver theme was a little too snobby and insisted on putting a red one in there. It was a nice touch (but I immediately took it down when he wasn't looking - I guess I am a snob!)

Snow days

2010-12-11T16:05:00.000-08:00

Simeon LOVES the snow. The first time he went out this year he shuffled around the yard for about 10 minutes making little trails.Felicity would have joined in the fun, but she was busy having a staring contest with hippo.Today was another beautiful snowy day; flakes gently falling to the earth. Perfect weather for picking out our Christmas tree!! We turned it into quite a quest, I think we looked over every tree on the lot. But behind us is the beaut we decided on:Sean cut it down while Simeon acted as supervisor. It's in our living room thawing out and we're going to have a little decorating party tomorrow. Can't wait!

Birthdays

2010-11-24T16:00:00.000-08:00

November has a busy couple of weeks in it for my family. Simeon's birthday is followed by mine (Ruth) and then my mother's. So it's only now that I'm starting to get in the Christmas spirit - who can think about Christmas when you've got two weeks of cake and ice cream???
This year's celebrations were fantastic. My parents hosted Simeon's birthday so all I had to do was make a cake and for my birthday we went to our friend's place for supper - easy peasy :) My parents and sister came over and let me do mom's birthday which was a lot of fun. I love playing the host and hopefully she enjoyed a meal that she didn't have to prepare herself.
Sean gave me a shopping trip to Ten Thousand Villages' annual sale. That's what we did last year as well and I'm a big fan of the tradition.
I'm so glad that my birthday falls in November because (I will finally admit) November is probably the most miserable month of the year - March is strong competition. It usually has terrible calendar photos because even professional photographers can't find anything worth shooting. BUT when you've got presents and great food to look forward to; the weather doesn't matter so much. And once the Great Birthday Bonanza is over and the dust has settled: Wham! It's Christmas season and everybody's happy again.
I apologize since I know this doesn't help you, but try to find your own silver lining to November. It really is a great month. You just have to look a bit harder.
Simeon, of course, wasn't pondering any of this. He just wanted to dig in to his cake!

He was very enthusiastic about blowing out his candle, in fact we had to relight it because he did it as soon as the cake was set down. I guess he wanted dessert.My oldest sister was home for a visit and Simeon got to see his cousins, who were very good at showing him how to rip into those presents. 3 years old!

Catching up on holidays

2010-11-09T10:21:00.000-08:00

As promised (almost a month ago) here are a couple pictures from Thanksgiving. We got to spend time with both our families and enjoyed VERY yummy meals. At the Carroll's everyone went for a canoe paddle before dinner. Here's Simeon trying to look busy while everybody else is unloading the gear.He had a great time skimming his fingers through the water - while Grampy did all the paddling. He's a smart boy.

This year was the first time that Simeon went trick-or-treating. He only went to a few houses but made out like a bandit none the less. He was pretty good about saying "trick or treat" but his favourite part of the routine was giving everyone a big ROAR! After all, he is a very scary lion. Felicity was dressed as either a duck or a chicken, her costume was a bit ambiguous but she looked pretty darn cute whichever she was.
We had some of Sean's students come to our door and they were intensely disappointed when I answered the door. I explained that Sean had our son out and they'd probably meet him up the street when I spotted Sean heading back to the house. They turned around and (no joke) started screaming "Mr. Carroll, Mr. Carroll!!!!". I had no idea that I was married to such a rock star lol.

A good day.

2010-10-13T11:36:00.000-07:00

I started off with an early morning walk before Sean had to leave for work - which meant before the sun came up. Yikes! Winter is coming! Anyway, after a shower I did my homework from the bible study I joined last night. Then a miscellany of housework and childcare stuff and then... here it comes... YARDWORK! It might sound dorky but I'm very excited that I burnt a bunch of scrap wood that Sean's been piling up in the crawl space. He's still working on insulating down there and has been fixing a bunch of small things that are cropping up - it has turned into a much bigger project than he anticipated. But it's going into the home stretch now (we think) and I've been pretty bummed that I haven't contributed at all. So here was my big chance :) I got a fire going in our firepit out back and bye bye wood.
I took some time out for bubbles and a photo-op, of course. Who could say no to these faces?
Gotta go make supper! Will post some thanksgiving pictures soon. Hope you all had a great one.

Apple Picking

2010-10-06T17:20:00.000-07:00

Two Sundays ago we went apple picking on the Kingston Peninsula with some friends. We had a fantastic time and it was a perfect day for it. It was nice to get some nice pictures of the kids as well as some fruit.Simeon was a great helper, Felicity felt a little overwhelmed at times : )After the orchard we headed off to a country store to pick out some pumpkins.Simeon looked high and low until he found the perfect one. Felicity and I were happy to leave the search in his capable hands.And to end the day we stopped in at an Anglican church with an interesting 2-tier pulpit.Does anyone know what the purpose of the 2 levels are? I've been told that Catholic churches sometimes have two pulpits on opposite sides of the sanctuary, one being for visiting Bishops, etc. to preach from, but this was an Anglican church and the second pulpit was eye level with the balcony. Just curious.

Hope that you're enjoying the fall and have a happy thanksgiving!

Words fail me...

2010-09-29T07:31:00.000-07:00

So last night we checked on Simeon (who I'd put to bed hours earlier) before we went to bed. And this is what we found:

Who sleeps standing up?

It's important to keep those lions out.

2010-09-18T17:45:00.000-07:00

Sean was under the house again today just trying to get to the point where he can do the work he originally intended to do. Thankfully he had his supervisor to keep him on track. No, not me. Simeon was there to make sure Sean did a good job sealing up some new mouse-sized holes he found. Or as Simeon put it: "Fill the hole daddy. Don't let the lions get in." I guess the lion population is something to consider before moving to Saint John.After Simeon was satisfied with Sean's progress he took a break for some well-deserved playtime. He loves to "climb" the apple tree in out backyard - he's a whopping 2 feet off the ground in this picture, but well pleased with himself nevertheless.Felicity woke up from her nap and wanted to hang out with her brother for a bit. And get a few cuddles too.She's been cooing a lot more lately, maybe telling her well-intentioned bro she needs some personal space?And we finished off the day with a bath. Going to church tomorrow to see all her peeps!

Busy bee

2010-09-15T06:13:00.001-07:00

Well, Sean has been either at work or under the house for the last couple weeks. He's trying to get the crawl space insulated before the cold weather hits and once he got working down there one project turned into several. But he's made a lot of progress. The old, ratty, useless insulation has been removed, a few wiring/pipe issues have been taken care of, the rotten support posts have been replaced and the pipes have been insulated. Not too bad in my opinion.
All that's left is to put vapor barrier down on the floor and put insulation up, which a friend has very kindly offered to help with. I confess that there isn't really a point to this post other than to brag about my husband, but I think he deserves it. After the supper dishes are cleared away I generally feel like my work for the day is done. I don't think I'd be too eager to crawl under the house to work after I just got done my other job.
But I'm sure glad he doesn't feel the same way. It'd be a cold winter if he did :)

Renos!

2010-09-06T15:11:00.000-07:00

Well, we've finally got some projects completed....mostly.

The garage was the first thing we tackled this summer. Before and after.

We wanted to paint it to match the house - painting was very hot work for a very pregnant lady, but Sean did the high parts and it was definitely worth the effort.

Next up was getting rid of the stump in the middle of our lawn. When we moved in there was a maple tree in the backyard, which I loved - until I found out that it was half rotted. So down it went! (Thanks to mom and dad for all their hard work, expertise and equipment) Sean decided to burn the stump out as that is easier, and less destructive, than digging it up. So up went a makeshift furnace and cue the flames:Now we just need to spread some topsoil, plant grass seed and hopefully next summer the stump will just be a distant memory.And now Felicity's room! Here's the before:

Sean took out the ceiling because it had that swirly plaster deco going on and it was also in pretty rough shape. Kevin came over to help Sean put up new drywall - a testament to the generosity of friends as it was a difficult, messy job and that's probably his boat calling saying: "Seriously, drywall? You do know the sun is shining right?"As well, Sean took out the rickety closet, the ugly carpet, the warped baseboard and made a sad little room into a top notch nursery. We went with a Beatrix Potter theme.

Sean still has to build a closet next to the crib and I have to make curtains and order a few more prints to hang on the other wall, but we're really happy to have the furniture moved in and the dust cleared out :)Thanks Krista for letting me copy your paint colour, thanks Angelique for helping us get the paint on the walls and thanks Simeon for being daddy's supervisor.

Working hard

2010-08-26T17:22:00.000-07:00

Sean has been working day and night, literally. When he comes home from work he's been heading upstairs to finish the nursery and his efforts are really paying off. He's installing the baseboard as I type and hopefully we'll have pictures to show you soon! I'm looking forward to having the furniture back in the room and not piled out here in the office all around me.
Sean's parents and brothers were here on Sunday afternoon for a visit. Simeon loved having the boys to play with and Grammy and Grampy were only too happy to hold Felicity at every opportunity.
Grammy even got a smile or two. At this point they're probably due to gas, but they still look just as cute.We'll be posting more when the nursery gets finished. Maybe in the next couple days! Can't wait!

Anchors away!

2010-08-15T18:35:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was beautiful - especially on the water. Saturday a friend of ours kindly invited us out on his boat and the next day Sean's uncle had Sean and Simeon out on his boat! (Felicity and I opted to stay home for some quiet time.)
Suffice it to say, it was an AWESOME couple of days. We took a few pictures on Saturday just maxin' and relaxin' on the motorboat.We stopped at Crystal Beach where Sean came up with his horror movie idea: Attack of the Mutant Baby!Apparently Simeon is trying out for the "terrified bystander" role.Coming soon to a theatre near you.

Felicity

2010-07-28T14:32:00.000-07:00

In case you haven't heard- we've got a little girl living with us now. She's been here since July 22nd, 1:29pm and weighs 9lbs, 1oz. She's been a pretty good house guest. Doesn't take up too much space and tends to sleep a lot. :)
Simeon is adjusting very well. He's very gentle with her and doesn't seem too jealous. However, he has had his Aunt Beth doting on him for the last few days, so we'll see if it's different when she's gone. It's been a HUGE help having Beth here and I can't say what a relief it's been to be able to focus on Felicity and not have to worry about meals and dishes, etc.
Tomorrow she'll be a week old and it'll just be our little family for the first time since her birth. A little nervous but also excited. The adventure begins....

Good meal, bad timing.

2010-07-15T07:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I woke up to rain and fog and I thought "hey, the heat has finally broken - Sean would love a hot, hearty meal tonight". By 3pm it was 25 degrees and crazy humid ~ I had the best of intentions though :(
If it ever should cool off though I recommend Ham & Potato soup with a side of cornbread. I find it salty enough without adding the salt (b/c of the ham) and it's a great way to use leftover ham. According to online opinions it's not recommended to freeze ham unless you slice it very thinly and put paper towels in between each slice. Sounds to me like a lot more work than I'm willing to put into it. But I've found that you can cube it for quiches or soup like this one and it tastes great (and saves time).

Tonight though I'm going for bbq and a cool broccoli salad!

Our little guy is growing up!

2010-07-13T17:05:00.000-07:00

About a month ago we bought bunk beds for Simeon. He had a great time building them with dad and he was a great help of course! LOL.

He wasn't too sure about sleeping in the bed the first night, but since then he's settled in and loves to stand at the top of the stairs every morning and announce with gusto: "I'm awake!"

It's all happening at the zoo.....

2010-07-06T12:24:00.000-07:00

*I do believe it. I do believe it's true.* Sorry, got a little caught up in Simon & Garfunkel land there.

We went to the Magnetic Hill Zoo last Friday with some friends and we had a blast!

First stop was the monkey enclosure, where we got to see the feedings and we "sang" to the gibbons to get them to sing back. Simeon wasn't too sure what to think but he loved the baboon in the next pen.

From there we went to more familiar animals. the goat was really interested in what snacks we were hiding it the stroller.

Zebras and leopards were next on the agenda. Sean and I were suitably impressed but Simeon seemed just as taken with the seagulls flying overhead and bugs crawling on the fences. As long as he's happy I guess :)

And for some reason Sean took about 2 dozen pictures of the ostrich. It wasn't as enthusiastic about the photo-op as he was.

Still not sure about this

2010-06-24T17:15:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to get Simeon used to the idea of having a sister. We've given up on him being happy about it and are just working on acceptance. Last night around his bedtime she was very active and I thought it might help if he felt her kicking.
His response: "Can Simeon kick mommy now?".
It's a work in progress.

Teamwork

2010-06-15T16:07:00.000-07:00

Our weekends have been busy lately, but they've been a lot of fun. In no particular order: we got to help some friends move and saw their beautiful new house, helped some other friends build a fence around their garden to keep the deer out, Camp Tulakadik Sunday was a blast, helped with cleanup at church, became members of our church and attended our first business meeting the next night. And this weekend Sean's helping build a "natural landscape" playground and then we're going to a birthday party and to the zoo the next day!

In between we've been doing some yardwork, assembled Simeon's new bunkbeds and a new (to us) crib for the baby and lots more. There were a few days there where everything seemed to be careening out of control as the weekends filled up (and all I could think of was my own to-do list) but I have such a sense of peace now. We've been able to spend time with so many of our friends that we haven't seen nearly as much as we'd like. It's really great when your priorities get straightened out - even when it's in spite of yourself.

The deer fence.

*Note: all these men have at least one university degree.

The two-four weekend

2010-06-10T16:34:00.000-07:00

Let's hear it for Queen Victoria, that great lady who gave nearly the whole of Europe their monarchs and gave Canada an excuse to kick off the camping season in May.
Friends of ours asked Sean if he'd like to go tenting to celebrate his birthday (28 years young) and of course he jumped at the chance :)
We headed up to Fundy and had a blast! It was Simeon's first camping trip and he did really well in his sleeping bag - once he finally stopped pacing the tent and jumping on our friends' air mattress.

Just relaxing after setting up the biggest tent I've ever seen. Honestly, we could have hosted Cirque du Soleil. It was hilarious - but very comfy; car camping definitely has its perks.

Whoopie pies took the place of a cake this year. But I think a fireside celebration more than made up for it.

A little hike to see the sights.

On the way in - before I started huffing and puffing ;)

Beautiful photo-ops everywhere.

And the falls! Simeon had a great time throwing rocks in the pool and would have stayed the rest of the day if we'd let him. It was a fantastic weekend - hiking, a visit to Alma (where Sean insisted on some sticky buns from the bakery), browsing in a bookstore, playing at the playground, campfires and a quick visit to the beach. I don't think you could ask for much more out of a weekend. We were all sad to go.

But Simeon was the most vocal about it.

Easter, tantrums and child labour

2010-06-06T18:03:00.000-07:00

Well, to continue bringing you up to speed- our spring was a lot of fun. I keep thinking that it's already summer because the weather's been so nice. With the exception of today.

At Easter Simeon and I decorated eggs for an Easter egg hunt in the backyard. Sean also contributed by using his rotary tool to drill perfect holes in the eggs so the insides could be easily removed. I know it sounds a bit ridiculous (using a rotary tool), but I remember blowing the yolks out through tiny pinholes when I was a child and being certain that my ears were going to start bleeding from the pressure. And I had to walk uphill both ways through a blizzard to get those eggs too ;)

Anyway, he had a good time finding the eggs and it made me feel a little less guilty about giving a 2 year old a whole chocolate bunny. Although I think we ate quite a bit of it in the end.
I've been waiting for the "terrible twos" to arrive and I don't think we've hit it quite yet. Don't get me wrong; he certainly has his moments and he's definitely a lot more opinionated but it hasn't turned into a battle zone....yet. He has however learned how to go from zero to hissy fit in 3 seconds flat. His saving grace is that he'll usually get over it in the same time frame. Oh, and he's caught on that his mother doesn't care and lacks the capacity for compassion.
We couldn't resist capturing all the stages here:

"Hey, look pizza! That would really hit the spot right about now!"
"What do you mean I have to wait 3 minutes! This is what the apocalypse will be like! Ahhhh!"

"Stupid pizza. I'll show you 3 minutes.....*grumble, grumble*"

In other news, a friend of ours has started her own translation company and she's trying to find a loophole in child labour laws.

His typing speed is improving daily :)

Time flies

2010-06-03T13:46:00.000-07:00

I can't believe we haven't posted since December! Whoops :) Anyway, since a picture is worth a thousand words I'll do an image summary rather than bore you with an essay.
We cut down our own tree again this year - on the coldest day in December I think- and Simeon seemed just as unimpressed as he did last year. But we were very happy with the end result and Simeon had a great time helping decorate.
He loved his presents and wanted to play with them straight away. Here he is mastering the art of finger painting. Or having fun trying.He's turning into quite a ham and keeps us well entertained.
We had a lot of fun outings - one of which was a trip to Camp Tulakadik. Here's my brother-in-law honing his goalkeeping skills.Sean and I tried out the new trails on our snowshoes.

In other news this winter; our well stop working. We were boiling down snow for about a week but it wasn't too bad. It sure makes you appreciate running water though.
And in his spare time Simeon caught up on a little light reading over those cold winter months.

We'll be posting regularly again - so keep checking back. Thanks for the patience.

First Snow

2009-12-09T18:08:00.000-08:00

A beautiful, pristine blanket of new snow. Ripe to be destroyed by the force that is Simeon.

Sean will be ready for show jumping any day now.

...and we were there too.

2009-10-24T15:57:00.000-07:00

This was early August, and a week on the Magdalen Islands was a welcome segueway between my summer job and another year of teaching. There were five us: Kevin and Angélique with Ruth, Simeon and me, and we started on PEI, where (as you can see) we took some time to reflect.In a shop window, downtown Charlottetown. Simeon eased comfortably into his role of smile-magnet in the backpack carrier worn by his papa.

...and in a very cool mirrored folding screen.

Sunset over Cavendish Beach. Here we had spent the afternoon, swimming, reading and sunbathing - which was to set the tone for the entire week ahead. The next day, the end of a five-hour ferry ride found us sailing past the enchanting Entry Island, the first in the Magdalen archipelago. We would return to it late in the week, to climb those hills and roam the trails a while.

The house we were staying in had a greenhouse, and that greenhouse had a snail. This snail. I think he dreamed of flying while he traversed the glassen roof.Suppertime - nothing to see here, everything under control...

Most nights, after supper was had and the sun (who'd had just as long a day as us) was going down, we'd walk across the road and onto this beach, which every night looked like this: not a soul around, just us, the sunset, and the Atlantic rolling in. Almost the entire archipelago is surrounded by sand, after all, so it's not hard to find a beach with no one on it. And then we'd gather driftwood, light a fire, and plan the next 24 hours....the plan usually involved a lot of sleeping on beaches and shopping in shops and eating in

cafés. The following is in Café de la Grave, once a general store. Evenings there were bliss: live music, fine coffees... what more can I say?

Simeon gets rock-skipping tips from Kevin on a windy day.
Miles and miles and miles of this, and hot hot hot (though warm weather is uncommon there). What a welcome break it was from the unending shower that was June and July.
Entry Island: We hiked, Simeon rode. It was a good day.Atop the aptly named Big Hill.

Horses and cattle roam the back of the island, the residents having found it needless to build a better fence than the Atlantic Ocean.I'm not kissing this horse; it only looks that way.

Inside the island's tiny church, the notes of hymns are transcribed in solfège for the organist.

Roving.

In our humble opinion (of which I've been asked, "If your opinion's so humble, why do we keep hearing from it?"), the Magdalen Islands is one fantastic getaway, very close to home. Give it a shot.

Simeon Does the Magdalen Islands :)

2009-09-29T15:40:00.000-07:00

The next three are courtesy, with our thanks, of Angélique.

Go ahead - pick a favourite;)

Picnic at the Park

2009-05-20T09:41:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we went for a walk at the Irving Nature Park (we've got a lot of catching up to do with our posts, I know). Well, we had a false start on Saturday when we packed our lunch, stroller, etc. etc. etc. only to find out in the parking lot that we (ahem, Sean) forgot the handle for the stroller. But on Sunday we were back with all our gear in tow. It was a bit cloudy, but great Saint John weather for April. We ate our lunch of bread, meat, cheese and apples on the beach- Simeon seemed particularly fond of the apples:Simeon warned us of some approaching danger so we decided to skedaddle--but not before a short photo-op with daddy!

Hey look!

2009-05-04T04:56:00.000-07:00

I have a flower! Ok, so not that impressive but at least it's something. I've decided to put in a vegetable garden and just focus on cleaning up the yard for this year (i.e. get rid of the ugly gravel and industrial pavers that the previous owner thought were decorative. Sigh.) Next year I'll worry about planning my flowerbeds. For now I'm waiting to see what's coming up from the ground; and the answer is a whole lot of nothing. I choose to see this as a blank slate for next season, rather than a depressing rectangle of dirt :) I hope your yard is a bit more cheery - come see us for some veggies in a couple of months!

Lately

2009-04-27T15:57:00.000-07:00

To supplement the income I've signed a part-time contract with Seaboard Transportation, hauling their trailers with my Accent. Sure it's destroyed my gas mileage but, hey, I'm hauling fuel - I help myself now and then.

Three Mirrors

2009-04-17T15:16:00.000-07:00

Shelburne, N.S., Easter weekend.

Ephesians 4:5

2009-04-17T15:02:00.000-07:00

We were in Shelburne Easter weekend for the baptism of our niece and nephew. Here, with his father, is Shiloh before his baptism -

and Abby after hers -

It was a lovely visit; many thanks to our hosts:)

Superstore, I applaud you!

2009-04-07T05:57:00.000-07:00

The other day I was perusing the internet and decided to check out the G.R.E.E.N. Insider's Report for Superstore and on the last page I saw that they're no longer going to give out complimentary plastic bags. Now they'll be charging 5 cents a bag and the proceeds are going to the World Wildlife Foundation. What a fantastic idea! A friend of mine was saying that these reusable bags that everybody and their aunt is peddling is just a big money grab (I agree with her). They're not working to reduce pollution they just want to profit from the warm fuzzy you get when you impulse buy it and then let it rot on the floor of your closet. Now, I know that some people are faithful in using them and I freely admit that I forget mine quite often - so I'm not trying to sound high and mighty here. But the point is that Superstore is offering a pretty big incentive NOT to forget them and in a way to quasi-bully us into doing what we know we ought to be doing anyway. So be nice to your cashier because I called customer service to express my appreciation and apparently they're catching a LOT of flack for this.

PS-It starts April 22nd and any reusable bag will do, it doesn't need to be their brand.

Welcome Home

2009-04-05T16:00:00.001-07:00

Here it is! That last post was a bit of a lie... our phone lines have been fine for some time now:) Better late than never, I suppose.

2009-03-24T05:50:00.001-07:00

*COTH will be offline until the phone lines in our house get rewired - keep checking*

It's official!

2009-03-16T17:52:00.001-07:00

Sean and I are now homeowners!
We are extremely excited and are looking forward to moving in on Saturday. We'll post some pictures after we've settled, which shouldn't take long as we've had so many people offer to help us move in :)
Sean's had a rough few days because he's got laryngitis (wow, I spelled that right on my first try) but he's got antibiotics now and we're hoping that it'll improve drastically very soon.
Well, back to packing boxes. Toodles!

Squeaky clean

2009-03-09T16:18:00.000-07:00

We've neglected the blog again, but this time we have a really good reason....we're moving! In 7 days we'll put our John Hancocks on the dotted line and we'll have ourselves a house. I can't WAIT to have my own backyard. I must admit, I'm still nervous that some catastrophe will befall us and it'll all come crashing down. Cheery, eh? That's why no pictures of the house yet. So...I'm going to post about Simeon instead (I'm sure no one will mind).

I was doing the dishes and I heard a lot of wild laughing coming from the bathroom where my son was supposed to be getting his bath. When I saw the cause of the ruckus I had to grab the camera.

We've always blow dried Simeon hair because 1) there's always been an unreasonable amount of it, and 2) his softspot always made me wary of towel drying the top of his head. Now he's taken matters into his own hands.

So that's an update and hopefully no meteors land on our home.

Bleak.

2009-02-19T17:30:00.001-08:00

The Marina in Winter.

Walk like a man.

2009-02-18T07:01:00.000-08:00

On January 15th at 4:34 pm Simeon took his first steps and quite unbelievably today is the first time I've filmed it! I know, shameful. Anyway, here's the longest clip I could get since he goes into convulsions of joy whenever he sees the camera, which equals falling flat on his bum.

He can go from one end to the other in our apartment without falling, although he isn't fond of performing in public so sometimes he makes me look like a liar :) Last night he got another haircut and we're going to visit great-grammie this afternoon; here's hoping he shows off for her.

Here's another one.

2009-02-16T13:02:00.000-08:00

Early this morning:

"Mr. Carroll, I haven't been feeling good ever since I ate that wallpaper paste."
~Gr. 8 girl. (Yes, grade 8).

I swear... I should write a book.

Saturday

2009-02-15T18:20:00.000-08:00

Yesterday - eleven and one-half hours on Poley Mountain. FUN :)Props to Mark for getting the trip together. I expect I'll be able to walk again any day now.

It's happening.

2009-02-11T18:04:00.000-08:00

Today -

Gr. 6 student: "I checked the Wikipedia books - the stuff you asked for isn't in there."
Me: "You... checked the what?"
Him: "Wikipedia books."
Me: [blank stare, and then] "Do you mean the encyclopedia?"
"Yes."

Ever feel like you're fighting an uphill battle?

Child Pageants

2009-02-10T20:01:00.000-08:00

So, I was staying up late again melting my brain by watching tv instead of being asleep like all reasonable people and I saw a very odd show called "Toddlers & Tiaras". It's about children (we're talking from 2-8 years old) who compete in beauty pageants! It's frightening the lengths that the adults go to to live vicariously through their children. Spray tanning, false teeth, big hair, make up and swimsuit competitions....... for babies! Insanity has a name and it's "little miss Texas royalty". I just hope that when the parents see it on the air they'll realize what they're forcing their kids into and stop. More likely, they'll make the kids watch it over and over again to see what they did wrong in the competition. Sigh~ I hope no one tells me how beautiful Simeon is anytime soon; I might run for the hills.

It Was A Dark And Stormy Night

2009-01-29T13:41:00.000-08:00

(and Saint John was beautiful.)

Use with caution

2009-01-23T10:38:00.000-08:00

Last week we stopped at Benjamin's Books in Rothesay and we found a toy that Sean had when he was a child. You spin the stick between your hands and it will take off and fly around the room. The downside is that you can't really control where it goes. As evidenced in the photo.

Simeon had a good laugh over it at least. By the way, does anyone know what these are called?

I would recommend...

2009-01-15T05:29:00.000-08:00

1. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Sean and I went to the movies a couple of nights ago (big thanks to Jen for babysitting!) and it was fantastic. I was expecting a very predictable Hollywood film, but it was MUCH better than I thought it would be and I loved it! I don't think I've ever cried in a theatre, but with this movie you just can't help it. Unfortunately it seems that on Tuesdays obnoxious people get in for free. I have the happy ability to block out idle chatter during a movie so not much phases me BUT this group really took the cake. First, a woman decides she needs to pee (she's in the middle of the row) ok, no problem, it's a long movie. Not ten minutes passes when her boyfriend realizes "hey! I have a bladder too - I think I'll use it" so HE goes (and at one of the most critical moments in the story too). Am I the only one who learned to go before the movie starts? Then someone's on-call walkie talkie thingy starts talking/ringing for 3 whole minutes while everybody in the rows around us whisper "it's not mine, is it yours?" until the guy next to Sean realizes it's his. He presses a bunch of buttons, none of which prevents it from going off again 5 minutes later. In summary: if you haven't yet learned the basics of potty and cell phone etiquette- start renting your movies.

2. The Business of Being Born. This is a documentary about the virtual elimination of midwives in the United States (it's very representative of the situation in Canada as well). It's a lot of statistics but very interesting. It focuses on the relationship between drugs during labour and the increase of c-sections and other interventions. The basic message is to inform yourself before you give birth because the doctors don't necessarily know what's best. For myself, when I had Simeon I went in with the desire to avoid having an epidural. I was given something to speed up my contractions (presumably in the oxytoxin family) and if I had known then what I know now I would have refused or at least questioned it. No one explained what it did, they just said I needed it and they're the professionals. Before I start to sound like too much of a self-righteous hippy/conspiracy theorist I'd like to clarify that I'm not looking down on anyone or trying to make anybody feel guilty I'm simply saying that I think it's very difficult to get to the facts and actually be informed enough to give consent. We're constantly being told "oops! I guess that's not safe for children after all." and I'm sick of it. How about actually doing research before recommending drugs. Our nurse emphatically stated that epidurals have no side effects; now however you feel about epidurals it is a drug and ALL DRUGS HAVE SIDE EFFECTS, to deny it is either blatant lying or frightening ignorance. I can't take cold medicine when I'm pregnant but a stong painkiller is a-ok? {deep breath} Anyway, it a great movie and it's definitely worth a watch. They also show the history of various birthing methods since the 1900's which is CRAZY!!!

Christmas the Second

2008-12-28T12:18:00.000-08:00

It's safe to say that Simeon enjoyed his second Christmas a little more than his first. Here he be, moments after receiving a rocking horse from his Mom and Dad.
This, I think, is my favourite shot from this Christmas: Grampy Coffey helps Simeon unpack his stocking.

Christmas Eve Suprise

2008-12-24T16:04:00.000-08:00

Just got a very unexpected phone call from two Yemeni friends of ours, Hamed and Yousef (seen here), who are now studying in the United States. Thanks guys - it was great to hear from you!! Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T10:24:00.000-08:00

I know, I know. But not only have I been too busy to post things, I've also been too busy to take any pictures. After some threatening emails, however, here's a couple things I scrounged up. Merry Christmas to You.

Update: Simeon is standing now. Heartily refuses to take a step, but he can stand for quite some time:)

Last week we went skating at Harbour Station with his godparents Kevin and Angelique. While Kevin was at the helm of Simeon's sled I shot a bit of video before hitting the wall (keep your head up in the corner).

Love-triangle

2008-12-03T09:01:00.000-08:00

Jack Layton, Gilles Duceppe and Stephane Dion; who would have thought? I feel like I'm in that movie where the awkward girl becomes popular against the odds, so the cheerleaders decide to take her down because they don't want her to become prom queen. Well if you haven't seen the film the bottom line is that the cheerleaders are vindictive drama queens. Sound familiar? The funny thing is that I didn't even vote Conservative in the last election (wasn't that just last week?) but I am furious that these guys - in the interest of the Canadian people of course- are trying to overthrow the government. Who do they think they are???? I'm so glad that we voted, our voices were really heard weren't they. I've called the NDP and the Liberal offices and left messages saying how outraged I am. I haven't bothered the Bloc because I don't hold any hope that they'll care what I have to say - Plus if I'm forced to speak to someone in French I'll make quite a fool out of myself. In short, if you're as upset about this as I am please contact the NDP and Liberal offices.

Simeon/Simian

2008-11-28T19:30:00.000-08:00

Neat

2008-11-15T17:21:00.000-08:00

Ok here's what you do. Next time you have a bonfire, grab your camera. Set the shutter speed really high so that only the highlights of the flames get through and none of the ambient light. Then take pictures in continuous shoot mode so you get, like, 300 pictures in two minutes. You need that many because most will look like nothing except dark fire. Weed through them, though, and you'll find some seriously cool shapes, like these:

The upper half of this one looks like a slightly evil face: man with large mustache wearing a fedora (right half of face in shadow).

And here we have (in the upper left) a beast with ram's horns and long sombre humanoid face. Could be related to this guy.

This is Cosette from the Les Mis poster.

Here you can see a man - probably an early French explorer - looking sideways (to your right) and slightly back. He's wearing a large cloak and a strange hat.

This is among my favourites. It is a full-length view of a woman walking to the right, carrying a bundle of some kind. Her face is completely in shadow, but she looks determined.

Side profile of a viking head with horned helmet. Looking up and to the right.
This one looks like nothing (maybe a surreal seashell) but I love how solid it seems.

Block Party

2008-11-13T17:48:00.000-08:00

Learns a new trick every day...

Walk on By

2008-11-11T13:33:00.000-08:00

Enjoying his birthday present:)

And, for something unrelated - we forgot to post about Halloween! Simeon was a giraffe. In the morning we went to our mommy & me reading time where a lot of other animals were in attendance, including 3 lions, a bear and dog. That night we stuck around the house for a while passing out candy and then headed over to our friend's place. Simeon helped greet trick or treaters after performing his concerto...
then rejoined the herd. Unfortunately, his very uncool mom made him go to bed before they could reach the plains.
Sigh. Way to go mom.

Birthday boy

2008-11-10T18:11:00.000-08:00

Simeon is one year old! November 8th was the big day and it was pretty low key, we sang to him when he woke up and gave him his present. The real hullabaloo was to take place Sunday night. I had to give him a little help in blowing out the candle, but he had no problem figuring things out from there. He got to have cake AND ice cream - his first real taste of sugar. His cousins were on hand to help out with the passing out (and opening) of the gifts...and they were great at explaining what birthdays are. I'm not sure he took it all in, but they gave it their best shot anyway.This past year has gone by so quickly. When I see babies now it's hard to remember that little bundle that we held in our arms with the fuzzy shock of hair. I can't believe all the changes that he's gone through already; first word, crawling, solid foods and the first time when he reaches out to be held only by you - but before I get too teary Simeon wanted to say: Thanks Grammie & Grampy for hosting a great party.

reflect

2008-11-06T17:43:00.000-08:00

Nerf guns are fun.

2008-11-05T19:17:00.000-08:00

It gets a bit shaky because I was laughing so hard myself!
PS- this was just after Halloween in case you're wondering why mini chocolate bars are strewn all over the floor.

44th President

2008-11-05T16:36:00.001-08:00

Sean and I were very excited to see Barack Obama win the election on Tuesday. We stayed up until midnight watching the news - yes, Sean "the old man" Carroll voluntarily stayed up past ten. :) {I'm going to be in trouble when he reads this post lol}
What was really interesting to me was to hear the reactions from the black community the next day. Person after person (of all ages) was saying "I never thought I'd see the day that a black man was elected president" or "Now I can tell my kids they can be whatever they want to be and know it's true". It was incredible to me that in this day and age there is a whole people group who have felt excluded from success because of their race. I'm sure that I sound very naive, and I probably am - because honestly I can't think of an instance where someone's been discriminated against. I heard the N-word once and had I been a little older and a little bolder I would've said something instead of being shocked into silence. Racism is a problem in Canada, I'm not denying that but it's just not something that I've seen firsthand. In short, I congratulate the U.S. on this landmark in their history and I also want to say that John McCain had a wonderful concession speech and took back a lot of dignity that had been sacrificed during the last few weeks of his campaign.
That's my shout out to the USA.
Back to Simeon. :)

House sitting

2008-11-03T18:37:00.000-08:00

We spent a week at a friend's house taking care of things and chasing Simeon around the place. He learned to crawl thanks to the hardwood floors and is getting around faster than ever.Simeon also got out the tools to do a few repairs around the house. He's currently trying to get into the local union.
But even after all that he's still raring to go (daddy doesn't have as much energy).
We also took full advantage of the backyard and Simeon had a great time.

His first sail

2008-10-16T04:15:00.001-07:00

Simeon liked sailing a lot. In fact, he spent the first 15 minutes trying to "help" grampy man the sails ~ by untying all the ropes that is :) We did have a lifejacket with us, in case you were wondering. He didn't take too kindly to it though seeing as how it made his arms stick straight out LOL. We thought it was pretty funny, but he remained unamused.

About halfway through I took him below because he started to get fussy (missed his afternoon nap) but I'd still say that he did very well for his first trip on the bay. And here he is safely back on land.

The giving of thanks.

2008-10-15T11:33:00.000-07:00

We spent the whole weekend in Belleisle and the weather couldn't have been better! At one point I actually wished that I'd brought capris because it was so warm. It was a lazy time - for me at least. Sean usually takes on a lot of the diapers changing and early mornings on the weekends and he outdid himself this time! One morning I was still in bed at 9:30!! it's been at least a year since I've done that and it felt soooooo good. Sean didn't have quite as much sleep - Sunday he actually had to drive Simeon home (45 minute drive) at midnight because the little *ahem* tyke wouldn't sleep. I won't get into the whole story, but suffice it to say that if you pick up and move the playpen a baby is sleeping in, that child doesn't tend to appreciate it. But let's move on.

On Saturday we picked up some pumpkins to carve for Thanksgiving - oh yes, jack-o-lanterns aren't just for Halloween anymore :)

That afternoon we relaxed in the beautiful sunshine and Simeon showcased his sensitive side. I think he may be auditioning for a men's cologne ad in this picture. Not quite sure though.And back to happy.

There's a lot more to come, but I hear the man in question starting to stir. Hope you had a happy Thanksgiving!

Airing Out, Clearing Up.

2008-10-07T07:41:00.000-07:00

Hi, it's Ruth again. Here we go...

Point 1:
Since the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision there have been 4 Republican presidents (not including Richard Nixon who was in power at the time). The decision still stands, despite the party's very vocal opposition to abortion. I want to be crystal clear that I hold a pro-life stance and do not support abortion. In my post I wasn't supporting the Democrats' pro-choice stance; I was condemning the practice of Republican candidates using the anti-abortion rhetoric to get themselves elected when they don't change (nor harbour any intention of changing) abortion laws. Now, I'm sure that we can debate nuances of bills and amendments that may impact individual states or grey areas of definition within the abortion laws but what I'm saying is, if these candidates are so anti-abortion, why is it still legal? It seems they've had ample oppourtunity. Could it just be a tactic to get votes? YES! That is my point. Votes should be based on policies and changes that candidates are actually going to make. It might give you a warm fuzzy that McCain is pro-life, but if that won't change anything then what does it really matter?
PS- McCain stated that he would not overturn Roe v. Wade if he was made President.

Point 2:
You can't create/impose a relationship with Jesus Christ by the legislation you pass. By this I mean that even if all the laws in Canada (or the US) were in exact adherence to the moral standards of the Bible, Canada would be no closer to being a Christian nation than it is right now. It is a relationship that cannot be brought about by social pressure or ideology. So say we ban gay marriage and make things incredibly tough socially and legally for homosexual people. Hands up if you believe this will make homosexuals say "Oh! I guess this must be wrong, I didn't realize before it was made illegal." Change in peoples' lives is brought about by Christ and not by government. Again, I don't agree with homosexuality but I'm not going to march and picket about it because I believe such behaviour only alienates people and drives them away from Christianity in general. Incidentally the behaviour in question was rampant in Christ's time and He didn't run around shouting with a sign in His hand, either, or spend His evenings madly dashing off letters to Caesar. Revival is not brought about by government; it is effected by the people. So, is it vitally important to me if my political leader is a Christian? No, and here's why: a) the Church has always been strongest when it has been furthest removed from the state anyway and b) the possession of good morals is not exclusive to Christians. If that's the tack you take then you'd better make sure your boss/CEO/manager, etc. is a believer too because otherwise he/she is clearly incapable of making any intelligent decisions.

Point 3:
Voting is personal and it should not be said that Christians should vote for a certain party no matter what. I'll use the example of the States because this attitude seems more prevalent there. In recent years Republicans have demonstrated disregard for the poorest peoples and have allowed health insurance companies to line their pockets while denying benefits to their customers; there are a lot more issues but you get the picture. To the average Canadian observer Republican seems to equal rich, white men who don't care about anyone else, but they are "opposed" to abortion. The Democrats are not opposed to abortion, but seem to want to help the poor, middle class and oppressed individuals. So, if a Christian feels that the Democratic platform matches 90% of their morals and the Republicans only 10% then why is it unreasonable that a Christian person would want to vote Democrat? Sometimes refusing to do so looks like blind allegiance. I know that the issue of who to vote for isn't that simple and there are probably a lot of good, valid reasons to vote Republican but here's my point: it is positively ridiculous to say that someone cannot be a Christian while not voting Republican. Last time I checked none of us was omniscient, so let's not decide who is saved based on a ballot. Thanks so much.

Feel free to comment.

Old-fashioned blogging

2008-09-30T17:10:00.000-07:00

Time has flown by this past week, and I can't really think where it's gone. In lieu of having anything interesting to write about; here are some photos of the person you probably are most interested in anyway :)Simeon has been pulling himself up on furniture, etc. for a few weeks now and he's taken to typing out messages to his fans. Unfortunately he distracts easily, and rarely has time to finish his letters. Pity.

He's also very suspicious of observers - such as his mommy.

Disappointment

2008-09-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

Sean has been VERY busy the last couple of weeks and frankly my only excuse for not blogging is not feeling up to it. I haven't been sick, I've just been discouraged. American politics are everywhere and as usual I'm fascinated by their election (I'm trying to get into ours and I will, but it's hard when it feels like we just had one last month. But anyway.) I shouldn't be surprised by the antics especially when the last two elections have been such fiascoes but once again they've managed to shock me with their blatant lies - THAT PEOPLE GLADLY SWALLOW! Let's look at this little gem that the Republicans have come up with at an event that was sponsored by Dr. Dobson and other lovely evangelical Christians - like these two entrepreneurs.

I especially like how they're still spouting the propaganda that Obama is a Muslim because he wore Kenyan dress. Real global thinkers. I am disturbed by the actions of "Christians" in the Republican Party - this is a very mild example. I do not understand why candidates (like Sarah Palin) are so admired just because they say abortion is wrong. Bush has been saying it for 8 years and abortions haven't gone down one bit - how long will this line work?!?
So, I may have to rant from time to time in order to keep my sanity. Oh yeah, and another interesting thing I learned about Dr. Dobson today: He circulated a letter to get Richard Cizik (VP for Governmental Affairs of the National Association of Evangelicals) to resign because Cizik believed that environmental issues should be part of the Evangelical political agenda. Nice work Jimmy.

Bees knees and other things...

2008-09-06T10:21:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago Sean discovered the Sheldon Point Trail (it's on the way to the Irving Nature Park) so we went there as a family last weekend. These flowers were lining the path for about 250 meters and we happened to see this bee flying around collecting pollen. The pollen was stuck all over her body and you can see it on her leg in the picture. The hairs it sticks to are also referred to as plumose. By the way, does anyone know the name of the flower? It's seed pods explode if you roll them between your fingers.This leaf got caught by a thread of one of the webs farther down the trail and Sean enjoyed the floating effect it produced.
And here's Simeon; having a great time on his new perch. If you can't tell the tree has grown on top of a boulder and the roots extend down to the ground. He had a ball.

After the ride...

2008-09-02T17:47:00.000-07:00

When we got back on shore we couldn't pass up this photo op.Simeon liked the view from his new perch.But he was glad to be going home all the same.

Full speed(boat) ahead!

2008-09-01T12:03:00.000-07:00

The weekend before last we were invited to go boating with the Simpsons. It was Simeon's first time in a boat but he didn't think much of the life jacket we got him.

He was much happier without - don't worry we kept a tight hold on him. It was a little choppy in places and Simeon liked the motion so much that he would rock back and forth when he found the ride too smooth.

We tied up for a little while to watch the dragon boat races and the boys took a dip.It was a beautiful day and we all had a great time, especially Simeon who was quite doted on :)

Getting older.

2008-08-27T07:56:00.000-07:00

On Monday I walked into Simeon's room when I heard him wake up from his nap and I found the little imp on his knees! He was quite pleased with his accomplishment as you can see.And today he was up on his feet. As soon as dad gets home from work his crib will be lowered. I want to tell him to stop learning - at 91/2 months he's practically a young man. This growing up business is overrated ;)

Side effects

2008-08-26T08:34:00.000-07:00

A friend of ours recently told us that research is being done to find out if memory loss may be a side effect of Ritalin usage. Sean had ADD/ADHD and was prescribed Ritalin as a child.

Ruth: You know if that side effect for Ritalin is true, it would explain a lot.
Sean: What side effect?
Ruth: Memory loss.
Sean: Oh yeah, I forgot.

Case in point.

Gran'm'nan ;)

2008-08-19T15:13:00.000-07:00

Camped out last weekend on the Queen of the Fundy Isles with four other couples - had a blast. Tented on a cliff, heard whales blowing in the night - here's a couple pics. Not of the whales, mind you... terribly difficult to photograph whales in the fog at midnight...

Ryan and me on the ferry, as seen by Sara on the upper deck.

Our wonderful campsite. We had three sites all in a row on this cliff, and between them we pitched our five tents.

T-shirt on a tree. Nothing like a good fog to leave your clothes fluffy and... damp.

...and that was the last anyone ever saw of Ryan Colwell.

Myself, halfway through my YMCA routine on Hole in the Wall.

Suppa :)

Dawn on Sunday was a definite highlight: having camped next to a very active foghorn all weekend, we woke to see the sun finally ushering the fog bank back out to sea...

...which meant that we could go sea kayaking! Us, another couple, and a guide (far left).

Andrea and Justin feeling weir-y. Nyuk nyuk nyuk.

Us as seen by the crew on the cliff.

My bow paddler approaching Hole in the Wall.

Yup, good times.

15 days -- a new low?

2008-08-19T10:24:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the lack of blogging. Hopefully this picture will earn the forgiveness of our readers.
Last week we had a dry waller in fixing the hole in Simeon's bedroom wall. A section had to be cut out to access a leaking pipe and now it was time to repair. While his crib was out of bounds due to dust, he had his naps in our room. I was very thankful for the cradle Sean made and so was Simeon. He loved it - I could hear him taping on the side with his teether before he drifted off to sleep. One happy boy.

Travelling man

2008-08-04T10:05:00.000-07:00

Here's a little update on Simeon's army-crawl.

Barber's shop

2008-08-02T17:00:00.000-07:00

Last week we gave Simeon his 3rd haircut in 8 short months. He took it very well and this was his least squirmy appointment with the scissors - which was a huge relief to the barber (aka Mommy).

Here he is in his barber's chair.

A very happy customer.
Easy clean up.

Roseneath

2008-07-28T14:34:00.000-07:00

I'm going to tell you a story. It is the story of a house, and this house was called Roseneath in years gone by, and in more recent times has been referred to simply as "Barton," after the Nova Scotian community in which it is found.

You could say I grew up in this house, and you could say this even if you knew I never lived there - even then you wouldn't be far off, because I came to this house every summer - I mean every single summer of my entire existence - while growing up. In this sense I grew up here even more than in the parsonage on Brier Island (eight years) or in Dipper Harbour (fifteen years). My mother can say the same, and her brothers and sisters can too, and their father before them (though only for most of his life, not all of it). Great-Grandfather Taylor acquired it as a summer home in Grampy's youth and his descendants have gathered at Barton - in varying numbers and degrees of chaos - ever since. So here, in pictures, is how those visits went.

There are two important elements in this photograph. The main one is of course the road sign; when you reach this sign you're less than a minute away from the house. The second is the steeple - barely visible against the cloudy sky I know, but it's there, to the left above the trees. And every single year my siblings and I would have a fierce 2- second competition around who could spot that steeple first from the back seat of the Thunderbird/K-Car/minivan (in that order). And unlike almost every other competition in childhood, it didn't matter who won. Unlike anything else at all, we were happy no matter who it was because anyone winning at all meant that we were really close. And then - just one more hill and then - then just around this very last bend and then - there it was, swinging up and away from the road under a canopy of maple trees: the driveway.

...I would hate to understate the excitement engendered by this driveway in the minds of road-weary backseat warriors. At any rate, it looks - and in my lifetime has always looked - like this:

Swinging left at the top, Dad would park the car just about here - the house on the right and this old shed on the left.

Much more important than the shed, though, was the tree in front of it, and the big blue rope swing with its first inviting chance to stretch limbs and shake off the trip. Then it was a dash through the back door into that ancient kitchen to smell the old smells and pass all the old furniture on our way to hug any relatives who might have beat us to the place that summer.

To the interior. I have from sheer negligence omitted many rooms and passages, so this post is fragmentary and there's nothing I can do about it. This is the front hall, perpetually ill-lit:

The staircase on the left has always been one of my most vivid memories: every creak of the steps, every dull curving edge worn down by generations - no two are now the same but I know them all, as we all know them - light-coloured where time and use have won, dark as night where the varnish has. And that railing - oh, that ailing, failing railing. I never trusted the way it moved, you see; not the kind of thing you'd be brave enough to slide down, even as a kid.

On to sturdier things: here is the study to the right of the hall.

In it you can see the pump organ which has defied all reason in being fully functional to this day. The clock to the right has a note inscribed in pencil on the back: "Cleaned and repaired, June 29th, 1888." I would say that it was due for its next appointment except that it, too, is still in perfect working order.

The front door is never used, and neither therefore is this chair. But whenever I passed it in that gloomy hallway, and saw the old fragile curtain playing in the breeze across the doily on the back of the chair, I couldn't resist picturing some ancient fellow sitting there a century ago, writing in a book or waiting for a carriage.

Here is the tap in the old claw-footed tub upstairs. With the help of a rubber hose borrowed from the antediluvian washer downstairs it became the worst imitation of a shower you've ever seen. Get there first in the morning and you'll have hot water.

The ceilings have... character.

I slept in the attic, where the gaps in the plaster were much larger and more curiously shaped than this; year after year I would lie awake at night staring at them, finding shapes in the exposed slats like you do with clouds.

This will have to do for the current post. There are more pictures to come - of me as a small child at Barton and of Simeon there too. For now though, one more picture as nature slowly reclaims the place; and the last words go to my father, who wrote this poem following our latest visit:

This old house is quiet for most of the year
The pictures look down on silent rooms
The figurines still where little hands last placed them
Upstairs, blankets are folded on beds
Morning into noon, evening into night
This old house shelters its myriad memories
Of running happy children
Of laughter and loud voices on midsummer nights
Of those who will never come through its doors again
This old house
is quiet
and waits

"He's alright, he's just scared"

2008-07-20T15:16:00.000-07:00

Today while I was at work, Sean and Simeon went to Canadian Tire to pick up a few things. Simeon was in the seat of the cart when a boy of considerable size with autism ran up to say hello to him. Unfortunately the boy was too enthusiastic and said hi by hitting Simeon on the head and knocking him sideways in the cart. I'm not faulting the boy or even his father - I can't imagine how hard it would be to parent someone with autism and keep track of their every move - BUT I wasn't too impressed with his dad's response (as Simeon was screaming): "The baby's alright, he's just scared".

This is the second time Sean has heard this. Five years ago he was biking in Moncton while attending ABU. At 50 km/h on Mountain Rd he was struck by a large car going the same speed in the same direction, swiping him neatly off his bike and sending him through the air into an adjacent parking lot. Nothing was broken but the feeling had left him and he couldn't move. The man (slightly on the older side) got out, looked down at Sean, and said "Oh! You're all right, arentcha? Yeah - I think I scared ya more than hurt ya." Sean blinked, still unable to move or talk. The man nodded and smiled, apparently satisfied with his diagnosis, and got back in his car.

Is it fear of blame that keeps people from accepting responsibility? Members of the public, please listen: The next time you succeed in injuring one of my family, just say, "I'm sorry." Then we can all get along.

The name makes sense.

2008-07-14T12:39:00.000-07:00

I present spaghetti squash!

This is what our kitchen looks like when I'm making baby food. Now that Simeon is 8 months we've been able to introduce a few more foods and I decided to do a bunch of batches of purees. When I cut open the squash I was surprised (even though I shouldn't have been) at how much spaghetti squash resembles, ummm, spaghetti --- call me Captain Obvious :) Anyway, after Simeon finishes it off I'll get another one and Sean and I will have to keep half of it for ourselves. Let me know if you have a good recipe!

Nice place, but a bit drafty.

2008-07-07T03:13:00.000-07:00

At some point you have to wonder whether the scaffolding is holding up the wall or the wall is holding up the scaffolding.Queen St., South End, Saint John.

It Don't Mean A Thing

2008-07-04T17:53:00.000-07:00

if it ain't got that swing ;)

Swimeon

2008-06-23T18:20:00.000-07:00

(With thanks to Caitlin for the title:)

And in the Seventh Month...

2008-06-19T22:25:00.000-07:00

...the baby spake.

(Stick with it - he gets it by the end:)

longtimenopostbutlookwereback

2008-06-13T16:50:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the long hiatus everybody. Last week was exam week. The week before that was the week before exam week. That's my excuse... Ruth's still looking for one:)

We're not up to much - housesitting in Quispamsis this week; I just found out I'll be teaching grade 4 next year. Here are a few things that caught my eye recently.

I found him on a tree... he's a fun guy...

Impending doom: an ill-fated worm (seen in the grass below the beak) struggles to enjoy his last 0.5 seconds of existence.

Peek-a-boo:)

Ruth made whipped shortbread cookies again... nom nom nom. Here they look like wallpaper.

Hugh MacLennan on Canada

2008-05-30T18:16:00.000-07:00

I recently read MacLennan's Two Solitudes. Here are a couple good lines:

"...people seemed so constructed that they were unable to use ideas as instruments to discover truth, and waved them instead like flags."

"Yes, McQueen thought with satisfaction, we have discovered a great social secret in Canada. We have contrived to solve problems which would ruin other countries merely by ignoring their existence."

Any day now.

2008-05-27T07:16:00.000-07:00

I noticed that Simeon is starting to do these little lunges to get where he wants to go. He can usually do quite a few in a row to navigate a straight line - he's a little tired in this video so it's not his best work, but you get the idea.

Note: We don't usually encourage him to play with plastic bags.

Juanita & Tom

2008-05-26T08:30:00.000-07:00

We just wanted to say a big congratulations to Juanita and Tom who were married on Saturday. It was a beautiful ceremony and they spent most of it grinning at each other. Ahhh, weddings. :)

Our Weekend: A Miscellany

2008-05-20T19:31:00.000-07:00

Tourist Baby: In Your Foreground.

Canoing the flood plain: A paddle through the trees.

And in other news, carrots = misery.

Grand Avenue

2008-05-07T18:04:00.000-07:00

(Click to enlarge)

Dat Wascally Wabbit

2008-05-01T10:10:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Simeon figured out that if he throws his toys on the ground his servants (parents) will pick them up for him. Sean, thinking Simeon was too little for this behavior, didn't believe me at first but then noticed the sly look in Simeon's eye as the toys went overboard. Anyway, we decided to take a video to show you. All was peachy until he decided that he had developed a taste for hare. :)

Spring

2008-04-28T17:53:00.001-07:00

Indoors = sad.Outdoors = content. ;)

Grey skies are gonna clear up

2008-04-24T08:23:00.000-07:00

It's rather dreary outside today - but I'm not complaining! We've had great weather lately and Simeon and I have been outside everyday (which is a great change after the long winter). Yesterday we went out to lunch with my parents and went back to their house for a visit and a tour of the garden. Things are finally starting to spring up. It's so good to see the green, even if the deer have eaten a lot of it :( They sent home some daffodils and mayflowers with me and they're a very cheery addition to the apartment, especially today.
Thanks mom and dad!

Our animal friends

2008-04-24T07:37:00.001-07:00

As a continuation of our last post I thought I'd share a couple of pictures we took of the local wildlife while we were at the reversing falls. The groundhog was very suspicious of our motives and kept inching towards his burrow but did let Simeon get a good look at him. That's assuming of course that he was looking at the rodent and not at his hands, thinking: "Hey! Fingers!"
I got Sean to snap this pic because I was quite impressed with this rather regal-looking seagull. I've never liked seagulls; they're rats with wings that infest fast food parking lots because stupid people feed them fries and then drive off before the birds start pooping happy meals on everyone else's windshields. *Sigh* But I digress. He seems different somehow. Here's hoping.

Sunday Afternoon

2008-04-21T15:13:00.000-07:00

Along the banks of the St. John River, playing in last year's grass.

Well Then

2008-04-19T08:43:00.000-07:00

On the same visit that produced the typewriter, Dad stumbled upon a second well on the property. Having previously seen the ends of these rotted and be-mossed planks under the hay on the hill, he decided to dig them up and clear them out. What he found was this:
And then this: A very old and beautifully executed fieldstone well.
Then he decided to clean the debris out. In the absence of a net, he climbed down into the well, bracing his feet against the loose stones. I thought, "Maybe not such a good idea." But if YOUR dad was about to fall into an old and frigid well, wouldn't YOU want to be there taking pictures too?
Anyway, he got out safely and we put a new covering on the well. Here now is a shot from the ecosystem on top of the old planks:
It had been raining off and on that day, and this little fellow had filled his raindrop-catching quota (the quota being 1); happy was he.

The Big, Silent Type

2008-04-13T16:49:00.000-07:00

Was up at Mum and Dad's Saturday. Helped purge the sun porch. Uncovered this Remington 30 banking typewriter, of which Dad was trying to unburden himself. I was only too happy to assist:) This old beauty weighs a tonne, and everything on it works smoothly.

The belly of the beast: this is a view across the inside of the typewriter (assisted on the other end by the light of a match).

The famous bell that makes that satisfying "ding."

The inclusion of the "@" key (seen here) was instrumental in writing pre-WWI commerce-related emails.

The Remington 30 has a fascinating history, dating back to its first recorded use to draw up a contract between Noah and the Post-Diluvian Ararat Zoological Society. Over the years the considerable heft of this machine has made it useful in sundry other lines of work, from mooring small boats to chaining down flight-risk criminals.

We may not have mentioned it.....

2008-04-11T11:44:00.000-07:00

I don't know if we've told you that Simeon can roll over now. Ummmm, surprise. Anyway, this morning I had him on the floor and he was reaching for a toy and he actually pulled himself forward to reach it! I couldn't believe it, he must've pulled him self a good 6 inches. I though it quite impressive. Of course, when I got the camera he wouldn't do it again but he does roll over in the video at least. {I apologize for the annoying voice in the background}

A drake and his duck

2008-04-11T11:18:00.000-07:00

The weather has been absolutely wonderful in old SJ this week and Simeon and I have been enjoying our daily walks tremendously! I took a few shots along the way to show you the signs of spring in our neck of the woods. The crocuses in this picture are the first blooms in my (Ruth) mother's flowerbed. Sidenote: did you know that crocus is Latin for saffron? Saffron is made of the stigma of the saffron crocus. Hmm.
We also met a couple of mallard ducks on our journey. We've seen them for over a week now and I'm hoping they'll stick around. Sadly, Simeon wasn't quite as interested (as you can see).

Duh! ; )

2008-04-05T18:50:00.000-07:00

Husbands create 7 hours of extra housework a week: study
Fri Apr 4, 2008 7:27pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - For married women who can't figure out why they always have so much housework researchers may have the answer -- husbands.

A new study from the University of Michigan shows that having a husband creates an extra seven hours of extra housework a week for women. But a wife saves her husband from an hour of chores around the house each week.

"It's a well-known pattern. There's still a significant reallocation of labor that occurs at marriage -- men tend to work more outside the home, while women take on more of the household labor," said Frank Stafford, of the university's Institute for Social Research (ISR), who directed the study.

"And the situation gets worse for women when they have children," he added in a statement.

Stafford's findings are based on 2005 time-diary data from a study on income dynamics that has been conducted since 1968 at ISR.

The researchers studied diaries to assess how people spent their time and questioned men and women about how much time they spend cooking, cleaning and doing basic work around the house.

They found that young single women did the least amount of housework, at about 12 hours a week. Married women in their 60 and 70s did nearly twice that amount, while women with more than three children spent 28 hours a week cleaning, cooking and washing.

But it's not as bad as it used to be. In 1976 women did an average of 26 hours of housework a week, while men did about six, according to the study.